Your ancestors in Northern Ireland
Irish family history records have been a challenge in the past to family history research. This is changing rapidly due to online records and Family History Societies dedicated to supporting you with your understanding of the records available and supporting your research. There are more than 70 million people alive today who claim Irish ancestry; maybe you are one of these?
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom (UK) and is described as a Country, province or region. Northern Ireland makes up 30% of the population of the island of Ireland; 3% of the population of the UK.
The Northern Ireland Assembly (established in 1998 as part of the Good Friday Agreement) is responsible for devolved policies, and cooperates with the UK and Republic of Ireland Governments. Northern Ireland was created in 1921 through partition with the south. The vast majority of the population were unionists (the majority of unionists were Potestant descendants of colonists from Great Britain) and wanted to remain within the United Kingdom. A significant minority of Catholics wanted a united Ireland independent of the UK. ‘The Troubles’ were a period of violence lasting for 3 decades from the 1960’s, claiming over 3,500 lives. Sporadic violence and sectarianism, plus religious segregatation remain problems.
Northern Ireland is historically thought of for its six counties (County Antrim, County Armagh, County Down, County Fermanagh, County Londonderry, County Tyrone). For local government purposes there are now eleven districts.
In 2011 42% of the population identified as Protestant/Non-Roman Catholic. 42% as Roman Catholic and 1% as non-Christian. 17% identified as no religion (or didn’t state a religion). The Presbyterian Church and Church of Ireland are the biggest denominations (Non-Roman Catholic).
Introduction
In 1922 a devastating fire in the Irish Public Record Office destroyed many records suitable for Family History research. Half of Anglican Irish parish registers were lost. Many probate records and most Census records were also lost. Civil registration records survive.
The starting point for any Irish research is the Irish Genealogical Society
BMD
Hatched, Matched and Despatched (Birth, Marriage and Death) records for Ireland begin in 1845 for Non-Roman Catholic marriages and from 1864 for all denominations. You can search these records for free at https://civilrecords.irishgenealogy.ie. You can view an index plus the scanned copies of the full register. Note that birth records are indexed on the website until 1916, marriage until 1941 and deaths until 1966.
Another option is GENI: https://geni.nidirect.gov.uk. The website states for data protection reasons the following records are available:
- Birth records over 100 years old
- Marriage records over 75 years old
- Death records (including World War II death records) over 50 years old
Certificates at the time of press were £15 each.
Census
A snapshot of a family, on one night of the year; the Census gives an invaluable insight into our ancestors lives.
The Census records that have survived are for 1901 and 1911; these are available on census.nationalarchives.ie for free. All other census records were destroyed in 1922, although partial records exist for 1821-1851 on Findmypast.
Emigrants
If you are looking to trace family who left Ireland then passenger lists could be the answer. These list departures from Nortern Ireland as well as arrivals to Northern Ireland. Indexes can be studied on Ancestry, Findmypast and TheGenealogist. Check out the following for background reading:
- https://aad.archives.gov/aad/series-list.jsp?cat=GP44
- www.nationalarchives.ie/topics/transportation/search01.html
Parish Registers
Roman Catholic Parish Registers are freely available at https://registers.nli.ie. Ancestry and Findmypast also have transcriptions and images of these registers, some of which maybe in Latin.
Church of Ireland Parish Registers are available at www.ireland.anglican.org/about/rcb-library/anglican-record-project. Check this website for the parishes and dates currently available.
Key contacts and useful websites
General Register Office (Northern Ireland). NISRA, Colby House, Stranmillis
Court, Belfast BT9 5RR. http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/general-register-office-for-northern-ireland
Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. 2 Titanic Boulevard, BELFAST BT3
9HQ. http://www.proni.gov.uk/
North of Ireland Family History Society. www.nifhs.org
www.iar.ie
www.rascal.ac.uk
Recommended text:
Paton, C Tracing your Irish Family History on the Internet, a guide for family historians. Pen and Sword, 2013.
Research ancestors in other countries
Sources
Family Tree Magazine, 2016
Wikipedia, accessed 2019
Robert Parker is a Genealogist and Trainer, based in Kent. He delivers courses, guidance, talks and research services for those interested in tracing their ancestors. See https://myfamilygenealogy.co.uk for further details. Contact Robert to discuss your requirements without obligation.
What stories might your ancestors tell?
There is also the 1939 Register, which for Northern Ireland has to be applied for from the Records Office, giving name and address of relative, and applying under the Freedom of Information Act. I’m sure you know this and apologies if you have stated this elsewhere. Unfortunately you don’t get to see it for yourself, unlike the Register entries for England and Wales available through Ancestry, for example. I have been unable to trace my great-grandmother who should have been at her cottage in Comber, nor my great-grandfather who would have been in The Thompson Memorial Home in Lisburn. In fact, I was told that there were only about four names recorded for the Home, so it is possible that the patients were not included at all, which seems a shame.
Thank you for your comment Sandra, which is useful for other readers. I have written a seperate blog on The 1939 Register here (https://myfamilygenealogy.co.uk/the-1939-register/), however this concentrates on the English Register so your information on the NI Register is much appreciated. I hope you continue to enjoy my blogs each month